Hopeful on immigration reform: Front Burner

(James Kegley / )

November 26, 2013

In June, a bipartisan U.S. Senate majority, including Florida Republican Marco Rubio, voted to overhaul immigration policy. The bill includes a major upgrade to border security and a path to citizenship for millions of immigrants in the country illegally. But the measure has stalled in the House amid GOP opposition to the citizenship provision.

Reform advocate Frank Sharry, founder of America's Voice, told Opinions Editor Paul Owens in an email interview that his group remains optimistic that a path to citizenship will become law. Excerpts follow; a full version is online at OrlandoSentinel.com/opinion.

Q: What would your group's ideal version of an immigration reform law include?

A: To fix our broken immigration system, we need a three-pronged approach: 1) an inclusive path to initial legal status and an achievable path to eventual citizenship for hardworking immigrant families who are here without immigration papers; 2) reforms to our legal immigration system so that American employers can sponsor needed workers and American families can sponsor close family members within limits; 3) smart enforcement practices that keep our borders secure and crack down on employers who hire illegally in order to undercut honest competitors and American workers.

Together these reforms will produce a legal, orderly system that serves our interests and reflects our values.

Q: How would a law like this benefit Florida?

A: According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, immigration reform would boost the output of the national economy by over 5 percent and shrink the deficit by nearly $1 trillion over 20 years. According to an economic analysis by the nonpartisan Regional Economic Models Inc., immigration reform would boost Florida's economic output by nearly $17 billion over the next three decades.

Q: Wouldn't a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants reward them for breaking the law?

A: The facts are stubborn: We have approximately 11 million people — a population the size of Ohio — living in America without immigration status. Most have lived here for more than a decade and most live in families. Why didn't they come legally or get legal once here? Because the immigration system is so broken that there are no lines for them to get into. Should we try to drive them out of the country? Impractical and inhumane. The three pronged reform strategy described above is the most pragmatic way to put immigration policy on a legal footing and reduce illegal immigration going forward.

Q: Wouldn't it encourage other immigrants to enter or remain in this country illegally in the future?

A: Once in place, a reformed immigration system will make it harder for those who want to come illegally to get into the country, harder for those here illegally to get work and easier for future immigrants to enter legally and work legally.

Q: Speaker John Boehner recently said the House won't take up the immigration bill the Senate passed in June. Does that mean comprehensive reform is dead?

A: More recently, he said that reform is not dead and that he expects the House to act on immigration in this Congress. We remain optimistic. For us, immigration reform is a matter of "when," not "if."

Q: What's the matter with doing reform piecemeal?

A: As a process, we can enact pieces of reform as long as the pieces add up to a real solution. But any piecemeal approach that avoids dealing with the fact that we have 11 million people living and working in our country is not a real solution.

This shouldn't be that hard. The American people are ready for reform by more than a 2-1 margin. The Senate voted for a reform that includes all three components by more than a 2-1 margin. Reform is strongly supported by Americans from across the spectrum. It's time for the House Republican leadership to catch up with the American people and get this done.